


(maybe this time) i’ve hit a home run

by AmyDancepantsPeralta



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff ensues, Jake and Amy at a Mets game, a smidgen of angst because ... Roger, early peraltiago goodness, senseless fluff? I know her well, set in s3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:53:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26673958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmyDancepantsPeralta/pseuds/AmyDancepantsPeralta
Summary: The sun feels warm against Jake’s skin as he links their fingers together, planting a kiss to the top of Amy's baseball cap.  It was a beautiful day in a lot of ways - the Met’s current lead of 2-0 a fine example - and getting to spend it with Amy made it all the better.  (inspired by a prompt written by @jamyperaltiago)
Relationships: Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago
Comments: 19
Kudos: 82
Collections: Summer 2020 Fic Exchange





	(maybe this time) i’ve hit a home run

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JamyPeraltiago](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamyPeraltiago/gifts).



> Hi there! As an admin for @b99fandomevents, I'd noticed this prompt early in the piece & today felt completely inspired to write this bonus fic/little one-shot ... @jamyperaltiago, I hope you enjoy it! 💖 ⚾️
> 
> (Please excuse any baseball inaccuracies I may have made, there was a lot of googling involved in the creation of this!)

**(maybe this time) I’ve hit a home run**

“Okay, so run me through this one more time.”

Squinting against the sun; Jake turns towards his girlfriend of nine months, a frisson of joy running through him as he realises how seriously she’s taking the task in front of her.“Fry first, then gummy worm.”He demonstrates with a grin.“Another fry, then dip the whole thing into the sundae, and enjoy.”

Amy shoots him a dubious look, following the instructions carefully and trying her very best not to cringe as she shoves the unnaturally colourful combination into her mouth.From his position closely beside her, Jake grins, and vaguely he hears the commentator’s voice crackle through the speakers around them.

Today he and Amy are attending a Mets v Phillies game at Citi Field - Amy’s first live baseball game _ever_ \- and once they’d made it to their seats, Jake had been eager to show her the combination of snacks that he has long since considered tradition.“Amazing, right?”

Licking her lips, Amy reaches out to rest a hand on his leg, squeezing gently.“Two things,” she begins, and Jake nods.“First, I love you.And second, please don’t ever make me eat that again.”

Incredulous, Jake lifts up the Peralta Combo in veneration.“French fries, sour worms and ice-cream?That’s the perfect combination of salty and sour and sweet, Ames!It’s a culinary delight.How can you _not_ love it?”

Shaking her head, Amy takes a sip of beer to wash the taste away, and Jake leans in to kiss the remnants of froth from her upper lip.“There is SO much sugar in that, babe.If you ate a whole tray of that, I’m certain you would be able to hear colour and smell sound.”

“And who wouldn’t want that?!”Tilting his head to the side, he grins.“You know, I bet magenta has a real screech to it.”

“Definitely a high vibrato of some sort,” Amy nods, and he bends down for another kiss.“But probably not something we’re ever _meant_ to hear, you know?”She winces, adjusting the tip of her baseball cap and craning her neck upwards.“I’m sorry, babe.I know it’s your favourite snack, but I don’t think I could stomach more of that.”

“Ames, it’s totally fine. Just means more for me, anyways.”Giving a reassuring smile, he lowers his treats to the empty seat beside him and wraps his free arm around Amy’s shoulders.“And I love you too, by the way.”

(It’s still a little exciting, finally being able to vocalise those three little words, and the way they both returned the sentiment so eagerly makes it all the better, every single time - rolling eyes from surrounding audiences be damned.)

The Phillies fans in the stadium cheer as Eickhoff's swing hits the ball with a heavy _crack_ , and as Amy leans forward to watch the action Jake sneaks a peek at her expression, desperately curious to see if she was enjoying the game or not.He’d been oddly anxious about today; worried that she wouldn’t feel the same thrum of anticipation amongst the crowd, or - even worse - that she’d find the whole thing ridiculous.Baseball was something that had been a part of his life since he was old enough to remember, and while he wanted to share it with Amy, the fear of her not enjoying the game was stronger than he’d anticipated. 

But then he’d been waiting at his apartment earlier today, nervous as all hell, when she’d shown up in a newly purchased Mets jersey and sneakers that matched his own.Stood in his kitchen with a proud smile, spouting out stats on some of his favourite players as he’d finished getting ready (all of which had clearly been recently researched); and he _knows_ that this probably sounds ridiculously schmaltzy, but he swears he fell even more in love with her right there and then. 

Eickhoff stops his run at second base, eyeing off the Mets’ shortstop Cabrera as he lobs the ball back to the pitcher, and Amy joins in on the applause that litters the crowd.“Shortstop - that’s what you used to play, right?”

Jake nods, his eyes suddenly trained on a moment a few rows forward; watching as a young boy no older than six shares a joke with his father, meeting his offered high five with obvious glee.“When I was in little league, yeah,” he mumbles as the nostalgia washes over him. 

There was a time when that would have been him; wearing his team jersey with pride as he ate too many hotdogs, laughing with Roger, riding high on his shoulders as they waded through the crowd on their way home.When they were watching baseball, there weren’t screaming matches filtering through closed doors, or strange lingerie stuffed in-between carseats for him to ignore on the way to school.At the stadium, it was just Jake and his Dad - a place where, for nine blissful innings, the rest of the world seemed to simply fade away. 

It had been mid-season and a month after Jake’s seventh birthday when Roger had walked away from it all, and now - much like the tin of baseball cards that Jake had stashed far to the back of a cupboard - the value of his memories are only sentimental (but priceless all the same).

Amy’s knee nudges against his thigh, and Jake’s met with a pair of beautifully gentle eyes when he turns towards her.Her voice is soft as she asks him if he’s okay, and he adjusts the back of his own cap, running a hand along the base of his neck.“Yeah, I’m fine.Just … thinking.”

She nods, twisting in her seat and resting her elbow along the back of his.“Did you keep playing after Roger left?”

Nodding, Jake leans back into his seat, fiddling with his hat again as the memory of sitting at Sal’s Pizza for hours after the game, _just in case Roger might swing by_ , surfaces from the corner of his mind.“Just for the rest of the season.I guess for a while there, I had sorta convinced myself that he would be coming back any day now.My plan was to just keep doing everything I normally did, so that when he _did_ come back, it would almost feel like he’d never left.”Amy’s hand falls onto the nape of his neck, sweeping slowly in soothing strokes, and he sighs, relaxing into her touch.“But as the months went by, and the phone calls grew fewer, the idea of putting the uniform on again just seemed … I don’t know … wrong.”

Letting out a tiny hum of assent, Amy’s fingers card into the bottom of Jake’s hair.“You still like watching the game, though?”

He nods again, a smile growing onto his face as he explained his mother’s insistence on taking him to games after Roger left.“She’d never quite gotten a grip on the right terminology, and always cheered for both teams regardless of who was playing; but her enthusiasm was definitely contagious.”It had worked incredibly well at reigniting the love Jake once had for the game, and over the years he’d branched out and watched matches with college buddies and friends from the academy alike. 

It was unexpected - but also so completely typical of dating someone like Amy - for today to be the day when all of his childhood memories came out in force.“Sorry, babe.I’m really dragging the vibe down here.Maybe we should - _mmmh_ \- ” Jake’s last few words die in his mouth as his girlfriend presses her lips against his, the palm of her hand resting against his cheek in a kiss that he only knows as being quintessentially Amy. 

She smiles when they part, brushing away a stray lock of hair from his fringe.“You don’t ever need to apologise for talking about your past, Jake.I want to hear all of it, regardless of where we are.If it matters to you, it matters to me.”

Mumbling another _I love you_ , Jake draws Amy in for a longer kiss, hand wrapping around her waist and pulling away only when the crowd cheers at Herrera’s fly ball.It was pretty amazing, how talking about memories with Amy rarely felt painful, and on days like today he has the strongest instinct that it’s largely because with her, he can already see his future taking shape. 

Leaning her body into his, Amy’s arm comes to rest comfortably on top of his upper thigh as she turns her attention back to the game in front of them, and softly she murmurs, “This is way better than watching the game in Manny’s living room.”

It’s at the bottom of the third inning that Amy twists away from Jake, rustling through her backpack before returning to her previous position and holding up a bag of nuts with unconstrained pride.“I thought we might get snacky.”

“You really are the perfect woman.”

“I bet you say that to all the girls you bring here.”

Wrapping his hand around Amy’s wrist, Jake squeezes gently.“Apart from my mom, and occasionally Gina, you’re the only girl I’ve brought here, Ames.”It’s a small distinction, but one he feels is important to make, and the soft smile that Amy gives him in return reaffirms his instinct. 

She kisses his cheek, brushing her lips against his skin as she moves to whisper in his ear.“Keep talking like that Peralta, and you’re going to see some solid third base action tonight.”Another kiss, this time to the base of his earlobe.“Maybe even a home run, once you see what I’ve got on underneath this jersey.”

(It’s an entirely new experience, trying to avoid getting an erection in a stadium while your girlfriend chuckles softly beside you - but one that Jake doesn’t _totally_ hate, if only for the knowledge that the wait is going to be completely worth it.)

He’s fully reclined into his seat, one arm wrapped around Amy’s shoulders when the Kiss Cam pans onto them at the top of the fifth inning, breaking into laughter as he watches Amy’s face quickly turn a delightful shade of pink.He’s still considering a humble peck to her cheek when she swivels in her seat, coiling her hand around his waist and pulling him in for an almost non-PG13 kiss before another moment can be wasted, and as the crowd cheers and Sixpence None The Richer plays in the background, Jake knows that he is totally, utterly and madly in love with the one and only Amy Santiago. 

There’s an oversized foam finger occupying Jake’s right hand, and his girlfriend’s fingers twisted around his left as they leave the field hours later, riding the high of another Met’s victory as they shuffle towards the exit.He listens contentedly as Amy chatters excitably about the potential for statistical analysis of the game - something about sabermetrics that only makes him think of Star Wars - and it’s as they head towards the carpark that Jake finds himself completely distracted once more.

He watches as a family in front of them move along the footpath, both parents holding onto one hand each of their child as they swing from their parent’s arms, the overjoyed giggles filtering through the noise of a departing crowd as they bounce on and off the pavement. 

It’s the feeling of Amy’s hand in his, and the still unspoken assurance that both of them are in this for the long haul that allows Jake’s mind to wonder of the possibility of such a moment ever belonging to him.He can almost see it: a chuckling toddler bounding between his and Amy’s arms, wearing their favourite jersey and singing the team song as they head home, just in time for bath and bed and some well-deserved Mommy and Daddy time (aka, falling asleep on the couch).It’s a future so simplistic, but for the longest time seemed unthinkable, and Jake breaks out into a wide grin at the sheer notion that something so great as a lifetime with Amy could ever be more than just an unrequited dream. 

Amy’s hand squeezes his as they draw nearer to her car, her face growing curious as she looks up at Jake.“What’s got you so smiley all of the sudden, Peralta?”

Shrugging nonchalantly, Jake hunches slightly to drop a quick kiss to Amy’s lips.“I’ve just spent an afternoon in the sunshine with a beautiful woman beside me, watching my favourite team win.There’s a lot of reasons to smile right there, babe.”

Resting her weight against her passenger door, Amy rests her hands on either side of Jake’s waist and looks up at him with an equally happy grin.“Thank you for taking me here, Jake.I loved every second of it.”Lowering her grip slightly, she digs her fingers into his side in a request for closeness; and Jake bridges the gap for another kiss, letting both of them sink into it as the lack of surrounding strangers lends to a sense of privacy. 

The subtle scent of her perfume lingers over his senses as Jake pulls away, held closely still by Amy’s curled fingers around his belt loops, and he leans his forehead against hers.“What was that you were saying earlier about hitting some bases tonight?”

He chuckles as she pushes him away with a gentle shove, giving him the Santiago wink (also known as a slow blink).“How about we head back to my place and I show you what I mean, detective?”

The car fills up with laughter and the easy conversations of two best friends in love as Amy navigates them through the streets of Brooklyn - and as they head closer to home, Jake already knows that whatever the future may hold, with Amy by his side, they were going to knock it right out of the park. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I truly hope you enjoyed ... feel free to leave kudos/comments below ☺️♥️ as always, you're welcome to come say hi to me on Tumblr, I'm @amydancepants-peralta! 💃🏻


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